Mushroom, Sausage & Sage Quinoa Stuffing

Mushroom, Sausage & Sage Quinoa Stuffing.

I could make a meal out of stuffing.  In fact I’m sure I have on more than one occasion.  This particular recipe was exceptional.  It had some key ingredients like lots of celery, carrots, and onion.  But it also had some special flavor boosting components.

To begin I browned off some ground sausage, followed by sliced mushrooms and set them aside.  Next came a good amount of butter and a few sprigs of fresh sage and thyme.  I allowed the herbs to infuse the butter before adding lots of diced carrots, onion, and celery.  Once they were tender I added in some minced garlic and sautéed for another minute.

Because we make roast chicken dinners nearly every week we always have tubs of frozen chicken stock in the freezer.  I thawed about 4 cups of broth and added it to our veggie mixture to come to a boil.  At that point turned off the heat, removed the sprigs of sage and thyme, and added in my cubed crusty bread.  Voila stuffing.

It was good, really good.  Yet there was no reason not to include a couple cups of cooked quinoa that was taking up space in the fridge.  It became great, really great.  Voila great stuffing.

Mushroom, Sausage & Sage Quinoa Stuffing.  There’s a chicken waiting for you.

Mushroom, Sausage & Sage Quinoa Stuffing

Libby with Lemony Thyme

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Prep Time 35 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 5 minutes mins

Servings 10

Ingredients

  

• 1/2 lb. ground pork sausage
• 8 ounces sliced mushrooms
• 4 Tbl. butter
• 2 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 sprigs fresh sage
• 1 large onion diced
• 2 carrots diced
• 3 celery ribs diced
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 multi-grain baguette large cubed & toasted (about 5 cups)
• 2 cups cooked quinoa prepared according to package instructions
• salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Slice baguette into 1-inch cubes. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Test for crunch and bake an addition 5-10 minutes if necessary.
• Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, brown sausage and remove to drain. Add mushrooms and allow to caramelize over medium heat for 8-10 minutes. Reserve with sausage.
• Add butter and herb sprigs to pan over low heat; sauté for 5 minutes. Add onion, carrots, and celery to pan and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes.
• Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and remove herb sprigs. Gently fold in toasted bread cubes and cooked quinoa. Season with salt & pepper to taste.
• Pour stuffing into a 2 quart buttered casserole or use to stuff a whole roasting chicken.
• If serving as a casserole, bake stuffing at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. If stuffing a chicken, see recipe link in post.

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Sausage & Mushroom Ragù